Steubenville Pottery: 1879-1959 (page 3)

©2004 Michael E. Pratt

Raymor Contempora by Ben Seibel

Master Potters of Steubenville, working from the gracefully sculptured designs of Ben Seibel, have created…Raymor Contempora…a new dining recipe for gracious living. –Raymor Contempora brochure, c. 1954

With the successes that designer dinnerware had achieved with American Modern, Raymor and Steubenville turned to Ben Seibel, to create its latest modern tableware service, Raymor Contempora. Ben Seibel garnered notoriety for his Raymor Modern Stoneware (RMS), introduced by Roseville Pottery in 1952. The RMS line was extensive and masterfully sculpted, featuring many unique items including a swinging coffee pot and stand, bun warmer, and flower basket. While RMS was unable to save the floundering Roseville Pottery, it did prove immensely popular during its short life span.

Seibel created Raymor Contempora (see table setting to the right in the Faun color) with a sculpted elegance and passion akin to the RMS line. Innovative shapes displayed individually like modern sculpture, and combine to form a highly functional dinnerware service. Bulbous forms such as the creamer, large teapot, and water pitcher are balanced by elongated items such as the sugar, soup and gravy boat which featured body extensions that served as handles. While not a new concept, the small nesting coffee pot allowed for stacking of additional pots one atop the other. A flattened lid knob made stacking possible, with the same finial design being repeated in the lid of the covered soup tureen, covered casserole, large teapot, and covered sugar.

One of Seibel’s crowning achievements in the Raymor Contempora line, was his ceramic bun warm which was comprised of two parts: a sliding cover whose molded, attached finial pivoted on a round ceramic knob that was the pinnacle of the body proper. Without the cover, the body is almost spherical with a large oval opening in its top half.

Additional interesting items included a salt and pepper shaker stand and party plate with well. A large divided food server complemented the traditional round chop plate and oval platter. Typical items included dinner, salad, and bread and butter plates; cup and saucer; fruit, celery, and pickle dishes; vegetable and salad bowls; and ash tray.

Glazes were glossy muted tones: Faun (beige), Mist Gray (light gray), Sand White, and Charcoal (black) and were designed to be mixed or matched. A rippled texture to the surface, giving the appearance of a surface-etched sgraffito technique, allowed the dinnerware to have a deeper aesthetic presence and possible explains why one Contempora brochure claims the line to be “a fourth dimension in dinnerware.”

Horizon Shape

The Horizon shape, introduced c.1951, is reminiscent of a 1940s modern vitality. Handles featured recessed solid arcs. Serving pieces were simplified, yet theatrical. Handles flowed easily from the body, smartly incorporated in the mold. Items were decorated underglaze. While the designer of the line and patterns has not been confirmed, Vincent Broomhall is known to have been the firm’s designer at a time when new patterns were being added to the Horizon shape in 1954.

One popular Horizon pattern was Family Affair, which displayed a rooster facing hen with chicks. Sunday Afternoon, a stylized fifties pattern featuring a quiet horse & carriage ride through the colonial country side, possesses a contemporary feeling. Two plaid patterns with an airbrushed quality were introduced on this shape—Multicolored for “outdoor living” and Julep Green for “more formal occasions”.

In 1954, Starfire (aka Starlite) was introduced, dramatizing green and brown starbursts on the Horizon shape (see photo of coffee pot to the right). The star decal pattern, two years later was used on the Citation shape and known as Satellite.

Citation Shape

The Citation shape was introduced to the market in 1955, although as is often typical trade journals carried a preview picture of the new line in the December, 1954 issue of the Crockery & Glass Journal. The line is distinguished by flat circular tab finials, coupe shaped plates, and angular handles. Serving items were centrally bulbous, with a foot that flowed easily into the body. The line has been described as a “shape classic in feeling, with a modern flair.”

Five original Citation decorations were sited—Princess Rose, Space Event, Galaxy, Spring Sonnet, and Fragrance. The only non-botanical was Space Event. The decoration was described as a “modern idea in salmon red, chartreuse, green and black”. Also introduced in 1955, Rhythm’s solid ovals overlapped by oval black-line spirals, is particularly modern in appearance. Still another pattern, Lyric, featured a floret of scrolled lines in pink, black, and gray with accenting lids in solid black. The Citation shape would continue to be used by the Canonsburg Potteries in its Steubenville Division. The Delrey decoration shown to the left may well have been such later production.

Casual Shape

In 1956 the Casual line of dinnerware was introduced, created by Vince Broomhall, Steubenville designer. Broomhall would later become president of the Steubenville division of Canonsburg Potteries. This outstanding modern line featured geometric patterns in pastel colors against a creme matte finish. The beverage server, creamer, covered sugar, salt and pepper sported a modified hourglass shape. Lidded items, like the beverage server, sugar and covered casserole had playful large spherical knobs. Plates represented a modern revival of rimmed flatware. The original four lines on the casual shape included: Domino, Dimension, Sequence, and Cotillion.

In 1958 other stylized patterns were introduced on the Casual shape, including Melon Patch (fruits and vegetables) Barnyard (rooster scene), and Gourmet (kitchen utensils).

The Pope-Gosser China Company (Coshocton, Ohio) closed its doors in May 1958. Steubenville Pottery acquired the rights, molds, records, copyrights and customer lists for Pope-Gosser’s traditional Rosepoint dinnerware line shortly thereafter.

In 1959, Russel Wright entered talks with the pottery regarding the production of a new line of dinnerware. Plans were to introduce the set in January 1960. It is unknown whether any prototype pieces were ever modeled, as events led to the sale of the company shortly thereafter.

The Steubenville Pottery Company, Division of Canonsburg Potteries

The Partio line was introduced c.1964-1965 by the Steubenville Pottery Company division of Canonsburg Potteries. Designed by the Irene Pasinski Associates, Partio’s feel is mid-century modern morphing toward the 1970’s, characteristic of so many lines created during this time period. Nevertheless it’s versatility demonstrates many of the major dinnerware design themes from the mid-century. Touted as multi-purpose, casseroles doubled for salad bowls and footed mugs inverted into egg cups. Partio porringers served the function of the soup, dessert, or cereal dish. The “PARTIO” logotype “R” was lighter, subliminally implying indoor and outdoor—“PATIO” use. Partio was designed for extreme temperatures—“from refrigerator to oven to table”. Some of the patterns in this line included Starfire, Homespun, Brownstone, and Bandana. Starfire’s simple radiant geometry was most typical of geometric mid-century design.

Thanks to Jim Drobka for the photos of the Starfire items.

Steubenville Starfire Set

Raymor Contempora table setting at the top of this page by Craig McCormick.

More photos by Craig McCormick of McCormick Studio:

Sources for this article include, but are not limited to:

American Modern Brochures
American Pottery and Glassware Reporter
Ann Kerr, Collector’s Encyclopedia of Russel Wright
Ceramic Industry
Ceramic Trade Directory, fourth edition
Ceramic Trade Directory, seventh edition
Chicago Sunday Tribune
China, Glass and Decorative Accessories
China, Glass and Lamps
Crockery & Glass Journal
Daily Herald
Edwin Atlee Barber, The Pottery and Porcelain of the United States, 3rd Edition
House & Garden
House Beautiful
Industrial Design
Jefferson College Times
Lois Lehner, Lehner’s Encyclopedia of U. S. Marks on Pottery, Porcelain, and Clay
Phone interviews and correspondence with Mrs. Harry Wintringer Jr.
Phone interviews with members of the Winteringer family
Original Steubenville Pottery business ledger
Pottery & Glass
Pottery, Glass & Brass Salesman
Printers’ Ink
Raymor Contempora brochure with price list
Retailing
Steubenville Casual Dinnerware Brochures
The American Pottery Gazette
The Daily Notes
The Gift and Art Buyer
The New Republic
U.S. Industrial Design
Wright Accessories Inc. Catalog